Spanish National Police have dismantled a criminal group alleged to have trafficked women from Romania to Spain where they were sexually exploited in nightclubs and forced to sell and consume cocaine.
According to Spanish police, the investigation began after a Romanian woman came forward claiming to have been trafficked to Barcelona and put to work as a prostitute in a nightclub, while being forced to take cocaine and sell it clients. The subsequent investigation led to raids being carried out on four homes in Barcelona, resulting in four arrests and searches on two locations in Romania.
More than 6,000 euros in cash, twelve mobile phones, a motorcycle, a high-end vehicle, and mixing agents were discovered during the raids in Barcelona along with 150 grams of cocaine, two revolvers, and other weapons.
The investigation was initiated after information provided by the Interior Attaché of the Romanian Embassy in Spain, who reported on a complaint filed by a victim of trafficking in Romania. The woman told the Romanian Police how she had been taken in by the gang while still a minor through the so-called “Lover Boy” method, and how the organisation trafficked women to Spain to be sexually exploited in a night club in Barcelona.
Investigators were able to verify that the women were also forced to use cocaine and sell it to their clients. A Romanian and a Spanish national were identified as the gang’s leaders who were responsible for supplying the drugs. The European police agency Europol was then called in to coordinate the investigation between Spanish and Romanian agencies.
The four suspects are facing charges of human trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation, drug trafficking and belonging to a criminal organisation.
